Capcom is looking into bringing Resident Evil Village to the PS4 and Xbox One but says that they will not make any promises.
These statements come from the recent Capcom Special Program presentation for Tokyo Game Show 2020, with producer Tsuyoshi Kanda saying that “were looking into delivering the experience on Xbox One and PS4 as well. We’re looking into it, but we can’t make any promises.“
You can view the program below, but the tidbit about the current-gen port starts at around the 17:40 mark:
As we know, Resident Evil Village was set to release exclusively for next-generation consoles exclusively, and it still is, at least for now. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One install base is huge, so it would make complete sense for Capcom to at least consider this, even with development implications.
Resident Evil Village is scheduled for a 2021 release for the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and PC.
Fans of Final Fantasy XVI may not have to wait too long as it seems that the game has been in development for quite some time.
Who said it and why should we believe it? Oh, just Jason Schreier, and we know that his track record for these kinds of info is more or less accurate.
As a guest on the Triple Click podcast, Schrier points out that “he’s heard from people who know the game, who have worked on the game or are familiar with the game’s development, that it’s actually been in development for at least four years in some capacity so it’s coming sooner than people think.“
Seeing the trailer again, it does lend some credence to the claim, as the trailer looks chock full of story references and scenes already that show an actual game rather than simply an announcement trailer.
Fans should probably not expect this game to be out this year though, or maybe even next year. Personally, this sounds and looks like a 2022 release if anything but hey, the sooner the better, right? There are a lot of games to tide us over until then, like Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Horizon Forbidden West, and even the new God of War.
Final Fantasy XVI is currently touted as a timed console exclusive for the PlayStation 5.
We all know that the next-generation consoles are going to be big, not just figuratively but literally as well. The PlayStation 5, in particular, is just straight up huge when put side by side with other consoles. With pre-orders coming and going, we’ve got to get ready to redecorate soon enough to prepare for the coming of these mean machines.
Enter Twitter user KeiSawada, who has done everyone a favor by illustrating just how both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X will look inside our homes, giving us an idea of how much furniture we’ll need to move around.
With most gamers owning a PlayStation 4 and a Nintendo Switch, it was only logical to place both side by side. The PlayStation 5 is looking like an absolute f****ng unit.
If you plan on getting both consoles, needless to say that you’ll be needing a LOT of space, especially if you’ll be placing them horizontally.
Both Sony and Microsoft not only want to empty your wallets but also your TV rack as well. You’ve got less than 2 months to clear up some space as the Xbox Series X and Series S will be releasing on November 10 while the PlayStation 5 will be releasing on November 12 in selected territories and November 19 worldwide.
It was reported previously that Spider-Man Remastered won’t be getting a standalone physical release and that PS4 save files won’t transfer to the Remastered version. These tidbits were handed out by Insomiac Games but just in case you were holding out for a silver lining, sad to say that Sony themselves have confirmed this as well.
In a message to Kotaku, here is what Sony has to say:
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Remastered is an enhanced version of Marvel’s Spider-Man, and is included as part of Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales Ultimate Edition for the PlayStation 5. In addition, players who purchase Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales on PlayStation 4 can upgrade at no additional cost to the PS5 version of Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales and can take advantage of a paid-upgrade to download Marvel’s Spider-Man: Remastered.
There are no plans currently to offer Marvel’s-Spider-Man: Remastered as a standalone. Players with a copy of Marvel’s Spider-Man for PS4 can purchase Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales Ultimate Edition to experience Marvel’s Spider-Man: Remastered on PS5. Marvel’s Spider-Man for PS4 also will be backwards compatible on PS5.
In case it wasn’t clear, let’s break it down for everybody:
Spider-Man: Miles Morales will have an Ultimate Edition only for the PS5. The Ultimate Edition contains the base Miles Morales game and Spider-Man Remastered.
Spider-Man: Miles Morales for the PS4 will have a free upgrade path for the PS5 BUT if you have the PS4 game on a physical disc and proceed to purchase the PS5 Digital Edition, you won’t be able to access the upgrade. Obviously.
Spider-Man: Miles Morales owners for the PS4 can upgrade to the PS5 version for free and additionally, can purchase a $20 upgrade for the Ultimate Edition, granting access to Spider-Man Remastered.
The PS4 Spider-Man game will be compatible with the PS5 BUT will not have any of the remastered upgrades like updated graphics, faster loading, etc.
Save data from the PS4 Spider-Man game will NOT be compatible with Spider-Man: Remastered because it is a “new” game.
Whew. Got that?
It sounds simple enough and complicated at the same time but what it all boils down to is the fact that Spider-Man Remastered will only be available to owners of Spider-Man: Miles Morales.
Many details like price and release date have already been revealed about the PlayStation 5 but many are still unconfirmed, leaving people to make wild guesses or lean into rumors. For today, it seems specifics about backwards compatibility have now been answered by a single tweet.
The official Japanese Ask PlayStation account posted a message as a response to a user saying that a PS4 disc won’t work on a PS5. The original tweet in Japanese can be seen below:
If the PS4 game is supported by PS5’s compatibility operations, both the disc and digital versions can be played as-is on the PS5. If you are going to play the PS4 game with a disc, please choose the model with the disc drive. We apologize for the insufficiency in the contact support related to PS5’s [backwards] compatibility, as we made the addendum above.
With this reply, we can now confirm that backwards compatible games, whether via disc or digital, can be played on a PlayStation 5. It goes without saying that PS4 disc based games will only work on the Disc edition of the PS5.
This means a lot of good things for PlayStation 4 users who have amassed quite the collection of games over the years, as CEO Jim Ryan even confirmed that 99% of PS4 games will be supported on the PS5.
Additionally, Sony has revealed the PS Plus Collection, which is an add-on value at no extra cost that allows PS Plus Subscribers to play classic PS4 games on their new PS5 for free. The list of curated titles include Bloodborne, God of War, Days Gone, Final Fantasy XV, Persona 5, and much more.
In case the PlayStation 5 launch lineup has not convinced you to secure a unit for yourself, this rumor might be the one you are waiting for.
As per Push Square, Youtube channel RedGamingTech has some interesting details that point to a Metal Gear Solid remake being developed for both the PS5 and PC, even going far enough to say that it would be a PS5 console exclusive.
You can view the video below, with the Metal Gear discussion happening at the 15:32 mark.
RedGamingTech has supposedly provided some accurate leaks before, so this could be another one to add to his record if indeed true. He goes on to say that his sources are “pretty damn positive it exists” and while there are a lot of other details that he cannot say, one thing that he can say is that “it is not a port, it is a full remake.”
RedGamingTech continues with the claim that Metal Gear Solid 2, 3, and 4 are also being re-released, but as remasters and not a remake.
While we have no reason to fully believe this rumor yet, the speculation about Metal Gear Solid 2 getting a re-release aligns with a recent Taiwan Game Ratings listing that indeed shows both Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance along with Metal Gear and Konami Collector’s Series: Castlevania and Contra getting PC ports.
This is to be taken with a massive grain of salt, but really big if proven to be true.
Insomniac Games have confirmed that the remastered version of the PS4 Spider-Man game for the PS5 will not be receiving a physical release.
Spider-Man: Miles Morales was recently revealed to have an ‘Ultimate Edition’, which includes not only the game but also a copy of a remastered version of the original Spider-Man game from the PS4. This remastered version was supposed to feature updated assets that will be taking advantage of the power of the PS5, making it look and run much better thanks to the next-gen hardware.
In a reply to a question from Twitter, Insomniac games have confirmed that the remaster will not get a separate physical release.
This means that PS4 players who have the original Spider-Man game quite possibly (not yet confirmed) won’t be getting a next-gen upgrade for the game to access the remaster. Why? Probably because the remastered version is a new game with new trophies, technically making it not compatible with the PS4 release, as per the PlayStation Blog.
This also means that the the only way you’ll get to access to the remastered version of the PS4 game is through the Miles Morales Ultimate Edition, which will retail for $69.99 (around PHP3,500).
If you don’t quite care about the PS4 Spider-Man game anymore but are picking up Miles Morales for the PS4, you’ll be glad to know though that there is a next-gen upgrade for this title, but only for Miles Morales.
Spider-Man: Miles Morales will be a launch title for the PlayStation 5 come November 12 or 19, depending on where you are located.
You’ve saved up for it and in 2 months time, you’re ready to throw money at your nearest retailer for that brand new console fix. But have you asked yourself – which next-gen console is for you?
For a moment when September began, we were not sure whether or not the next generation would get delayed or continue as planned. Just like an exciting TV saga, in much awaited fashion, leaks of the Xbox Series X and Series S forced Microsoft to reveal their cards showing aggressive pricing options for both the Xbox Series X and Series S at $499 and $299 respectively. Like a poorly kept secret, everyone even knew of the existence of the Series S even before it was forcibly revealed.
Sony, firing back, has announced their pricing details as well at $499 USD for the Standard Edition and $399 USD for the Digital Edition.
With four consoles and two companies to choose from, we’re here to lay out the groundwork and hopefully provide an answer to the question of which next-gen console is for you. Of course if you had the budget for it, why not buy both! Not everybody can, and if you have to choose only one, this will help you out.
Xbox Series X: The Powerhouse
The most powerful next-gen console, the Xbox Series X pulls no punches with their tech. They’re boasting teraflops, RAM, ray tracing, and all other tech mumbo jumbo that go past non-tech savvy gamers’ heads. The bottom line is if you want a console that screams power without breaking a sweat, the Series X is the right console for you.
With a competitive price of $499 USD, you’d be hard pressed to find a PC that can perform at this level and price point. It is just not possible at this point in time. Compared against the entry level cost of a gaming PC or laptop which would be around $700 and extends to as high as $4,000, the Xbox Series X is a convenient way to secure a powerful plug-and-play box without the high prices and tech know how to set up a definitive gaming experience.
At this point, however, with only a handful of games at launch and even losing Halo Infinite as a launch title, securing a Series X is basically saving it up for the future barrage of Microsoft exclusives. Remember all those studios that Microsoft acquired through the years? They’re prepping up and in a year or two, we’ll finally see the fruits of their labor and even Sony must be shuddering at the though.
The Series X will also get you the best graphical performance for multiplatform games starting day one. It would also be the next best place to play AAA titles such as Cyberpunk 2077 versus that of a full spec gaming PC or laptop at launch.
If you are a longtime Xbox gamer and have kept all your games from the original Xbox to the most current Xbox One, its backwards compatibility would benefit you greatly as almost all your games will be playable on launch. Some backwards compatible games would receive a graphical enhancements, sweetening the deal. Furthermore, Game Pass is a really great service. How great? How about free Bethesda games?
Personally, this console will reach full potential very soon, not just at launch. All the benefits listed outweigh the cost, but for now, unless you really feel the need to make your current gen games look fantastic while waiting for future titles, the Series X can wait a bit, especially if you have an Xbox One. It can “wait”, but the need to purchase eventually is almost assured.
PS5 Disc Edition: The Classic
The brand strength of the Playstation really carries its weight throughout this debate. For every benefit I would list for the Xbox Series X, just the first party pedigree alone of Playstation is enough to counteract any spec showcase. The power isn’t up to par, but what you’ll get is the continued promise of high quality first party games from Sony’s studios like God of War, The Last of Us, Ghost of Tsushima, Uncharted… Hell, Horizon Forbidden Westis even part of the first wave of exclusives about to come into play.
Call me cynical, but the quality of games is really what pushes console sales and the service/benefits of said console is mostly secondary. Personally, I can count how many consoles I’ve purchased due to the exclusivity of games alone and it started with PS1 for Final Fantasy 7 even if I had more games I could’ve picked up for the Nintendo 64 back in the day. The trend continued from there: PS2 for Metal Gear Solid 2 and Final Fantasy X, PSP for Crisis Core, Xbox 360 for Lost Odyssey, PS Vita for Persona 4 Golden, Nintendo Switch for Octopath Traveller, and a PS4 for Persona 5. After acquiring said console, we can just hope that the console would have enough new pedigrees for it and the behavior just carries over. Right now, from all the showcases from both parties, PS5 has the most exclusive games I could see myself playing in the future (with the future possibility of Final Fantasy 7 Remake 2 coming out with timed exclusivity on the PS5).
Historically, the best and the brightest aren’t usually the most popular when it comes to gaming. Sega’s hardware was far superior to Nintendo during the Master System and Genesis days, but Nintendo was the market leader in the late 80s up the mid-90s. Sega lost again to Sony Playstation with both their Sega Saturn and Dreamcast being outperformed even with better specs. Playstation, with the exception of the PS3 who boasted its tech more than its library, continued to perform well in the latter generations. It’s always been about the quality of the games and which console secures exclusivity. The name of the game mostly hasn’t changed, although Microsoft disagrees with this strategy.
Will sticking to traditional techniques bite Sony years down the line? Maybe, maybe not, but one thing is for certain, there’s almost no way you can go wrong with a PS5 purchase and that’s a fact.
PS5 Digital Edition: The Digital
Unlike the Xbox, there is only one difference between both PlayStation 5 models. For $100 more, the savings you would incur from purchasing a digital console would push you to miss out on not just the physical copy of the game, but also from the freedom of picking up a PS5 game outside of PSN. That’s a big consideration for some, for some not so.
I’m primarily a digital gamer from 2012 onwards with the advent of full AAA games coming out on Xbox Live and with the improvement of the PSN platform in 2013 thereafter. The only physical games I’ve picked up recently were for the Nintendo Switch Lite as storage is an issue. The PS4 discs are merely glorified installer discs at that point and the biggest benefit is that you save on internet data versus that of digital use.
For some savings, I don’t see the benefit of going fully digital when it severely limits my options in where to acquire games. While the PSN has been beneficial for me as a gamer, I would pay the extra cash to widen my options even if I seldom pick up physical copies. Plus the fact that both editions come equipped with the same 825 GB SSD, spend the dough and save on physical copies of the games down the line if they’re readily available for you.
Also, if PSN somehow goes down for extended periods, well, good luck downloading that 50GB game.
Xbox Series S: The Impulse Buy
The biggest draw of the Series S is the fact that you can pick up a next-gen console for chump change. At $299, you cannot beat this value. If you’re strapped for cash, and you really need to have a console on day one, the Series S is the way to go.
However, it is digital only and doesn’t have the same power as the full fat Xbox Series X, unlike both PlayStation 5 models. As argued in the PS5 digital, the console locks you into having Microsoft as your only distributor. Having no disc drive, it limits your backwards compatibility to your digital purchases. Plus with its price point, it will definitely work as the next-gen version of Xbox One S, limiting its capabilities to that of an entry level console. If you want more options and graphical improvements, your only option would be to upgrade, forcing you to shell out more money in the long run.
Though that being said, due to these difficult times, there’s still a benefit of the Series S in terms of its price point. If you haven’t upgraded your TV from 1080p to 4K, it’s a definite plus. It’s a perfect entry level console as well if you’ve missed out on the last two generations and would like to get back on the console train. By this point, you probably don’t have physical copies of the games in the last two generations and unless you’re willing to scour stores for copies of old games, the digital library is there for you to catch up. It’s also a great second console if you plan on buying both without breaking the bank.
And so with all this talk, we ask again, which next-gen console is for you?
Buy an Xbox Series X because…
You want to get max specs and performance without taking out a second mortgage for a decked out PC.
Disc drive gives easy access to the biggest gaming collection out of all the consoles due to its backwards compatibility.
Game Pass opens up to a large quantity of games including future first party and third party games on day one.
You don’t mind those tried and tested AAA exclusives that Sony parades around and instead may want something different and something “western”.
First wave of first party titles promising: Horizon Forbidden West, Gran Turismo 7, and Ratchet and Clank. Even God of War.
You can rely on the promise of great games year in and year out, some with PlayStation exclusive deals and content. It is Sony, after all, and almost every year they have legitimate Game of the Year candidates.
More options with second hand game purchases through physical copies from local retailers and groups.
Buy a PS5 digital edition because…
You want the same PS5 for $100 less.
You’re primarily a digital gamer and have no need for physical copies.
You’ve got a great internet connection.
It’s a much better console spec-wise to a Xbox Series S.
Buy a Xbox Series S because…
It has the perfect price point for an entry level console.
You have no plans on upgrading your 1080P HD TV.
You game casually but still want a taste of the future.
You’re planning to buy a PS5 but also want an Xbox as a second console on a limited budget, so as not to miss out on all these games.
At the end of the day, purchasing a console at launch is no easy feat. They’re usually way over the price point you’ve paid for on your last console and the titles usually lack in quality at launch. Given that the battle for this next generation is being drawn out at its endgame, Microsoft pulled a fast one with its aggressive pricing. Sony, backed by its pedigree, is relying on its fan base to push its sales.
In the end, it’s all about your needs and what would be the best possible buy. If you want the specs then get the Series X, but if you want the games, PS5 has the library, and if you want the cheapest console there’s the Series S.
There’s a market for everyone these days and at the end of the day… Why not both?
Ubisoft announces a new massive multiplayer outdoors playground entitled Riders Republic which will release on February 25, 2021 for the PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series, and PC.
Riders Republic was developed by Ubisoft Annecy and is a social playground where players can experience the thrill of extreme sports in open and densely populated world. Among these sports include biking, skiing, snowboarding, wing suiting, and rocket wing suiting.
Players can do these variety of extreme sports in a variety of destinations like American National Parks like Bryce Canyon, Yosemite Valley, Sequoia Park, Zion, Canyonlands, Mammoth Mountain, and Grand Teton.
There’s also a variety of multiplayer modes that can be played with a squad. These include:
Competitive Races and Trick Challenges with PvP and solo modes
Mass Starts – Frantic 50-player races
Multiplayer Arenas – a mode with 6v6 PvP matchups
Online cups – a mode to show off and show out to make it to the top of the leaderboard
The game also has a career mode wherein players can make a pave their way in the different sports, rise to the top of the leaderboard, and sign with sponsors. Riders can be customized through progression-based gear.
A Gold Edition and Ultimate Edition will be available for pre-order. Gold Edition will include the base game, Year 1 Pass, exotic kits, the BMX Sport add-on, and exclusive content. Ultimate Edition, on the other hand, includes the Year 1 Pass and four exclusive cosmetic packs: Cosmic, Rainbow, Neon and Skull’n Style. In addition to this, It includes 20 Helicopter tickets to reach summits faster.
Riders Republic will release on February 25, 2021 for the PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series, and PC, with free upgrades given to those who purchase the current generation version of the game.
Sony has apologized for the pre-order fiasco brought about by the recent PlayStation 5 announcements and promised that more PS5’s will be available for pre-order in the next few days.
With the announcement of pricing and pre-order details of the highly anticipated next-gen console, several retailers have seemingly jumped the gun even if pre-orders were supposed to happen the following day. This opened up the floodgates as customers rushed over to the nearest shops to get their reservations in. Online websites have also crashed due to the influx of pre-orders being placed.
Needless to say, it was a disaster.
Let’s be honest: PS5 preorders could have been a lot smoother. We truly apologize for that.
Over the next few days, we will release more PS5 consoles for preorder – retailers will share more details.
Sony then took to social media to reach out to the customers, saying that things could have been smoother and offered apologies. More information from the retailers will be shared and more chances for people who want a console will be able to get their shot.
Remember that talk with Geoff Keighley where Sony said that pre-orders wouldn’t catch anyone off guard? Seems like Sony forgot about that too BUT apologizing is a great first step. In fact, this was quite unexpected of the tech giant so it bodes well that they are at least listening and looking out for the customers.
In the Philippines, there is no news yet regarding pricing and pre-order details, so we’ll just have to wait a bit longer until PlayStation Asia throws us a bone.
The PlayStation 5 will release on November 12 in selected territories and worldwide on November 19.
Senior quest designer Patrick Mills was talking with host Alanah Pearce and mentioned that it will indeed be shorter because of complaints from players that The Witcher 3 was too long.
“The difference between a completionist run and a main story run… we do know that the main story run in Cyberpunk 2077 is slightly shorter than The Witcher 3 because we got a lot of complaints about Witcher 3’s main story just being too long. Looking at the metrics, you see tremendous numbers of people played through that game really far, but never made it to the end. We want you to see the full story, so we did shorten the main story, but we have lots to do, and in terms of a completionist campaign, I just don’t have that number.”
In comparison, The Witcher 3 main story on average takes 51.5 hours based on “How Long To Beat”. If you plan to complete everything however, be prepared to shell out a couple of hundred hours to do so, as can be attested to by gamers out there who have beat the game many times over.
Cyberpunk 2077 will feature 3 branching storylines called Lifepaths, and each will have different events and sequences, giving the players a unique experience each time. Safe to say that even though the main story is shorter, Cyberpunk might give more replay value, especially with incoming DLC.
Cyberpunk 2077 is scheduled to launch on November 19 with no more delays, and you can look forward to playing it on current generation consoles like the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, but also choose to hop right into the next-gen versions for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series, as well as the PC. Players can also look forward to a next-gen upgrade for current gen owners of the game next year.
Sony has confirmed that it won’t be bringing their first party games on a day one subscription service ala Game Pass because it is not sustainable.
In an interview with GamesIndustry.Biz, CEO Jim Ryan goes on to explain why this is the case, saying that “For us, having a catalogue of games is not something that defines a platform. Our pitch, as you’ve heard, is ‘new games, great games.’ We have had this conversation before — we are not going to go down the road of putting new releases titles into a subscription model. These games cost many millions of dollars, well over $100 million, to develop. We just don’t see that as sustainable.“
Ryan continues on to say that “We want to make the games bigger and better, and hopefully at some stage more persistent. So putting those into a subscription model on day one, for us, just doesn’t make any sense. For others in a different situation, it might well make sense, but for us it doesn’t. We want to expand and grow our existing ecosystem, and putting new games into a subscription model just doesn’t sit with that.”
Alternatively, with the PS5 announcement, a new PS Plus Collection was unveiled as well, which will allow early adopters of the PlayStation 5 to be able to pad their game library in an instant through a curated list of games and top hits like God of War, Days Gone, and Bloodborne among other titles.
The PlayStation 5 will be priced at $499 (around PHP25,000) for the Standard Edition and $399 around PHP20,000) for the Digital Edition. Both editions will release on November 12 in selected territories (US, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and South Korea) and November 19 worldwide.
We all know that the PlayStation 5 is going to be big, both figuratively and literally. While all comparisons have been estimates at this point, the FCC have published new photos for the PlayStation 5 (not beauty shots or renders) in the flesh, and it truly is a big, big boy.
With photos from The Verge and via Roberto Serrano on Twitter, we can see the console on its horizontal orientation, which gives us a better look at just how much space the console is going to take up when it hits retail in 2 months. The series of photos also show the base, which finally gives us an idea on how exactly the PS5 will be used horizontally or vertically. There aren’t any objects for comparison, but it doesn’t take too much deduction to know that this will be taking up a lot of real estate.
For now, these are the photos we can go on as far as a physical manifestation of the system is concerned, but as we approach launch date, we’ll be seeing more and more photos of the system in the wild, possibly unboxing videos as well.
Leaked photos from before suggest that the outer casing is swappable, which will allow access to possible internal upgrades as well as custom PS5 designs apart from the official SKU’s. While this is not yet confirmed, it could indeed be a possibility.
The PlayStation 5 will be priced at $499 (around PHP25,000) for the Standard Edition and $399 around PHP20,000) for the Digital Edition. Both editions will release on November 12 in selected territories (US, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and South Korea) and November 19 worldwide.
The install sizes for Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Demon’s Souls have been revealed, and both titles will immediately take up a sizeable chunk of the 825GB SSD of the PlayStation 5.
As more and more details about the PlayStation 5 are being revealed after its big showcase, some of its launch titles are taking the spotlight, specifically first party exclusives such as Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Demon’s Souls.
As seen from their respective PlayStation Direct pages, both games will take up at least 110GB right away from your hard drive.
For comparison, the PlayStation 4 Spider-Man game comes to about 45GB with its vanilla version, going up to around 75GB with all DLC installed, so that 50GB size that the remastered game comes with is not too bad, considering the improved textures that comes with it.
Both Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Demon’s Souls will be launch titles for the PlayStation 5 when it releases on November 12 in selected territories and November 19 worldwide.
In the latest episode of Cyberpunk 2077’s Night City Wire, we’re given a closer look at Night City and the Gangs that run the streets.
With two months away from the release of Cyberpunk 2077, most of the gameplay elements have been laid out in the last two episodes of Night City Wire. At this point in the game, it’s mostly looking at the background lore and elements that set the game apart from other open world games.
Postcards From Night City
The episode started strong with the new trailer, Postcards From Night City, that establishes Night City as a vibrant, living, breathing city. As compared to The Witcher and its disparate city states, Cyberpunk 2077 focuses on one general area akin to Grand Theft Auto’s Liberty City and its outskirts. This focus concentrates on a dynamic ecosystem that showcases six distinct districts. Each one would have their own personality, but would form a part of the whole of Night City. As Miles Tost points out, “Night City is a sum of its parts.”
Judging from the trailer, CD Projekt Red has put so much work on giving Night City a real sense of place. The world is realistic and believable. It feels like a grand metropolis akin to Tokyo, Manila, or New York where each borough has enough variety to call its own. This opens up endless possibilities of exploration in what Miles Tost calls “mini-stories”. Different from the side quests, these mini-stories are a culmination of small encounters and random events that the player will encounter during their journeys. As if the main quest isn’t enough, some districts could be full of minigames and some districts can lead you to some unsavory encounters with some gangs.
If this is executed from what the trailer is promising, it could be a game changer for sci-fi/post apocalyptic open world adventures. While we do have a variety seen in Midgar in Final Fantasy VII Remake, other post apocalyptic worlds look copy-pasted from each other as seen in Fallout, Rage, and Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise. Besides some small encampments, the overall look has remained generic. It doesn’t feel like a living breathing landscape as seen in larger games like Grand Theft Auto V and Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.
Gangs of Night City
The next trailer featurette is a quick dossier on the gangs that rule the streets of Night City. Each other represents a different element to the game as well as their own unique look. The Maelstrom gang is a group of transhumanists who are breaching the line between human and machine through excessive and creative mod usage. Valentinos are the dominant hispanic gang that follow their own traditions the same way as the Wraiths are following the nomadic code. Voodoo Boys are an urban myth of legendary netrunners that’s an open secret in Night City contrasted to the Animals who are the hired muscle by the Corpos. Rounding them off are the Tiger Boys consisting of the local Triad and The Moxes, a sorority of badass dames.
While V is primarily a merc, and mercs work alone, V would encounter these gangs either as antagonists, allies, or a place they can receive quests from. There’s a solitary beauty being a freelancer in Night City and while some players may feel the urge to join these gangs, gangs don’t really trust mercs completely. If V wants to become a legend, they can join an elite Merc group to get the best possible weapons, mods, and jobs.
This late in the game, what can they possibly feature in the next Night City Wire in October or early November? We get the hype, we love the world, now give us a demo at the very least!
You can choose to watch the full episode below:
Cyberpunk 2077 is scheduled for a November 19 release date on the PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series, as well as for the PC.
